English

Topological signatures of globular polymers

Soft Condensed Matter 2011-10-17 v1

Abstract

Simulations in which a globular ring polymer with delocalized knots is separated in two interacting loops by a slipping link, or in two non-interacting globuli by a wall with a hole, show how the minimal crossing number of the knots controls the equilibrium statistics. With slipping link the ring length is divided between the loops according to a simple law, but with unexpectedly large fluctuations. These are suppressed only for unknotted loops, whose length distribution shows always a fast power law decay. We also discover and explain a topological effect interfering with that of surface tension in the globule translocation through a membrane nanopore.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.1103.3985,
  title  = {Topological signatures of globular polymers},
  author = {M. Baiesi and E. Orlandini and A. L. Stella and F. Zonta},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1103.3985},
  year   = {2011}
}

Comments

4 pages, 5 figures